Strict protocols kept these 10 places free of the coronavirus
||| FROM WASHINGTON POST |||
Before 2020, the remote islands of the South Pacific were more accessible to leisure travelers than ever before. Thanks to affordable global air travel, little-known places such as Tonga, Vanuatu and the Cook Islands welcomed thousands of visitors annually from all over the world — up until the coronavirus pandemic hit.
Now those islands are some of the only remaining corners of the globe where the coronavirus doesn’t exist, thanks to their total suspension of inbound tourism and other nonessential travel.
Samoa
The islands of Samoa, which include the U.S. territory of American Samoa, closed to nonessential travel in March and have not recorded any confirmed coronavirus cases. To enter, U.S. citizens must hold permanent residency and request permission from the Samoan Health Ministry to travel on a commercial flight to Samoa through Auckland, New Zealand, before quarantining for 14 days.
Despite recent reports of a sailor testing positive for the virus in quarantine before then testing negative, the World Health Organization categorizes Samoa and American Samoa as covid-free.
According to the U.S. Embassy in American Samoa, masks are not required in public.
Tuvalu
The tiny island nation of Tuvalu has no reported coronavirus cases and does not allow visitors who have been in any countries where the coronavirus is present within five days before their arrival. Travelers from a high-risk country must get medical clearance from Tuvalu’s government to enter, according to the U.S. Embassy in Tuvalu.
Tonga
Only citizens of Tonga “returning by special arrangement” are allowed to enter the string of islands, which has had zero confirmed coronavirus cases. One weekly flight is available from New Zealand, which requires strict quarantines. Cruise ships and yacht sailings to the nation have been banned “until further notice,” according to the U.S. Embassy in Tonga.
READ FULL ARTICLE: https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2020/11/24/lockdown-covid-free/
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Good to hear that Tonga is still unaffected — or uninfected. I traveled there in the mid-1990s on an Earthwatch expedition and found it a wondrous island chain with warm, friendly people. We could learn from the Tongan example.
yeah, tonga iis the beacon on the hill that we should all strive to be like. measles epidemic, unsafe water, airborne diseases and tuberculosis. paradise. let’s stop all the tourists from the mainland from coming to orcas and also stop all the “full timers” on orcas from visiting the mainland. that’s the solution to all of the problems.
Solution to all the problems. Wow. As if your solution won’t create thousands of new problems.
Roy I think you were joking. At least I hope. LOL.
Can’t tell on this forum because there are so many who actually believe what you (facetiously) said. Either way, happy Thanksgiving!
wow, indeed, my comment was an attempt at sarcasm. the virus problems on orcas island are not due to tourists, nor will the problems be solved by banning tourists/visitors/parttime residents. similarly, the mainland’s virus problems will not be solved by stopping orcas residents from making costco runs. tonga does not have a covid problem, but, instead, has a host of other problems, some of which are very serious and are not present on orcas. to suggest that orcas’ problems can be solved by “learning from tonga” was the subject/target of my attempt at sarcasm.
happy thanksgiving to you and your family as well! stay safe, we are all in this together.
Okay. Of course if no one comes or goes, how else would an airborne virus be transmitted? Why is this interesting except as a footnote? Let me know if I read this too fast or missed some critical framework.
(Not a criticism of the re-posting, just WaPo content.)
Paige, most of the commentary before your was uninformed and downright silly.
Riordan, uninformed and silly why? Oh yeah, because you disagree. I will PNA (pay no attention) to your comment. Paige, the implication from this publication and readers like Riordan is that we should do the same here (ban all tourism). You can PNA. We’re all over that brain dead argument.
To repeat what I said earlier, pay no attention to those who comment under fake names.
No Dr. Riordan as I recall you said pay no attention to those who use their own names
Not true Phil. I know what I said. Don’t try to put words in my mouth. That’s foolish.
Put words in your mouth? Perish the thought!
In a post several weeks ago you charged that the current administration was responsible for the deaths of over 200,000 Americans. My comment was that based on initial projections the current administration had saved approximately 2 million lives, your retort was “pay no attention (PNA)” to me notwithstanding an even earlier post from you acknowledging that I use my own name.
Unfortunately past comments are now closed preventing reference or accountability for past statements.
Wrong again, Phil. I published an article in Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists stating, with evidence, that your esteemed president was responsible for over 100,000 (not 200,000) US deaths. But that was a couple of months ago, so maybe 200,000 is an accurate number now—especially since he’s been spending more time on the golf links than in the Oval Office since the election and seems to show no interest in the thousands of US citizens dying every week.
You Trumpists have a very estranged relationship with the truth, thinking that it’s whatever emerges from your dear leader’s mouth or twitter feed and not requiring any evidence to support it. Fortunately judges in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and Pennsylvania do not agree and have been throwing his laughable cases of election fraud out of their courts in droves.
But at least you have the courage and honesty to comment under your true name, Phil, unlike a few others in these pages.
My recollection is that my comment on Covid deaths was with respect to a county update that you and others also commented on. At the time the count may have been 214,000. Your response, “pay no attention (PNA)” introduced this phrase to the local lexicon where it continues to be used. You used it to refute my comment thus the conclusion that indeed you have applied it to those who use there own names.
But to your point, it’s absurd to view any death from a naturally occurring pandemic as the act of a national leader. Is Boris Johnson responsible for British deaths? of course not. Why then this irrational hatred of Trump? After all his administration contained the forecast death rate sparing close to two million lives, rebuilt the ventilator stockpile depleted by Obama-Biden, deployed field hospitals, fostered therapies and three vaccines all in nine months when the experts told us it would take 18 -24 months minimum. A stellar performance – you’re going to miss him when he’s gone.
Truth? Honesty is what I’m seeking from the commentary, you are more than capable of objective evaluation, It’s disappointing that your political views preclude it.
Phil, Riordan’s ship set sail long ago. Many on the left have adopted an unbecoming quality: If you say something they disagree with, you will be attacked, maligned, doxed, or subject to PNA. It’s the bully, mob mentality. Conform or you will be the enemy. Walk down the sidewalk in town with no mask, with nobody around, and get yelled at by passing cars. Talk about divisiveness. My experience with conservatives and Republicans is that they generally will always LISTEN with an open mind and genuinely welcome respectful dialog. You won’t get that here with some liberal commenters who live in these pages. Sad. But that is partly why the left are scaring so many back to the right. Riordan may PNA to differing opinions, but who cares as most of everyone else will pay attention, including me.
Thanks Dale, understood.
Their demonization is irrelevant to me. I write to include comparative commentary for the community. My opinions are informed by a 2,300 year old philisophical and a 230 year old political foundation, education including a graduate degree and teaching at a local college as an adjunct instructor, 44 years of real world work experience including 12 years as a small business owner, all of which support observation, comprehensive reading and listening to a range of sources, as well as critical analysis of data which often puts me at odds with elite reliance on dogma – groupthink.
When I worked for a public agency we were sent to what my boss called “charm school” that evaluated personality types and offered guidance on how we could better interact. Three of those types feared some form o social reaction, I fell strongly into the fourth category, analyticals who fear being wrong, so I try to be right and I invite correction if it can be substantiated. With that said, there are may on our island who have offered kind words and support, but fear social confrontation, so I comment to offer some small balance for them and encourage others, like you to do the same.